A scrappy Nation Ford Falcons varsity football came up short against the River Bluff Gators Friday, but it wasn’t for a lack of effort.
The Gators edged Nation Ford 35-30 as River Bluff outscored them 14-0 in the second quarter which was just enough as the Falcons were able to keep pace, but not catch up.
“The difference in the game was three touchdowns on three different slot passes,” said Nation Ford head coach Michael Allen. “I thought our kids were resilient. I am proud of them. We are down a few players but did a good job with the next man up.”
Nation Ford had six different linemen out which hurt in matching up with the Gators huge front.
Quarterback Carson Sanford threw for four touchdowns in going 24-for-37 for 327 yards. His main target was Josh Ameo who caught 13 passes for 210 yards and three touchdowns. Also coming up big for Nation Ford was Jayden Scott with seven catches for 76 yards and Patience Andrews on the ground running for 71 yards on 12 carries.
Nation Ford received the opening kick and did well moving the ball on their first drive. They were able to get to the 20-yard line of the Gators but had to settle for a 35-yard field goal by Austin Sarvis with 7:06 left in the opening quarter.
River Bluff answered on their initial drive taking a 7-3 lead with a 51- yard screen pass to Stephen Collier, who is committed to East Carolina University.
Nation Ford used a simple approach on their next drive with short passes. That allowed them to pick up yards after the catch which helped to move the ball. Carson Sanford hit Jacob Sanford with a 12-yard strike to put the Falcons back on top with a touchdown.
River Bluff wasted no time scoring in four plays to go back on top 14-10 with 1:53 left in the opening quarter The Falcons proved to be just as explosive as Sanford hit Ameo for a 66-yard touchdown off a screen pass with 56 seconds left in the first quarter. The drive was just five plays going 80-yards in 57 seconds.
Both defenses struggled to stop the others offense. The Gators took a 21-17 lead on a 10-yard touchdown pass with 9:37 left in the first half.
The momentum of the game changed after the Gators were able to force a Nation Ford punt. River Bluff started at midfield, but Nation Ford was able to return the favor and get a stop as the Gators missed a 28-yard field goal with about 6:45 left in the half.
The Falcons had a good drive after the stop on defense getting to the Gators 15, but had the drive stall.
After turning the ball over on downs, River Bluff was able to go 85-yards in six plays extending their lead with 72 seconds left in the half.
The Gators took the opening kick in the second half and put together a lengthy drive scoring to extend their lead. However, Nation Ford did the same as Sanford hit Ameo on a 21-yard touchdown connection, their second in the game, capping an eight play, 80-yard drive.
River Bluff had a nine-point lead entering the fourth quarter.
The Gators started going to the ground more to work the clock in their favor in the fourth quarter.
After being forced to punt, Nation Ford put together a drive that put them back into the game as they were able to score with Sanford hitting Ameo for their third touchdown connection with 2:55 left on a small 2-yard touchdown pass. That put the Falcons behind by just five as the Gators led 35-30 after the failed 2-point conversion.
Nation Ford dropped to 1-2 on the season and will host Richland Northeast next week.
Mac Banks: mac@fortmillprepsports.com, @fortprep
